Secret ballot could reveal new Iraq PM

BAGHDAD, Iraq -- Leaders of the Shiite political alliance that won Iraq's election failed to agree on a single nominee for prime minister Wednesday, with the two candidates insisting on a vote by the alliance's 140 parliamentarians, officials said.\nAfter meeting for hours with Shiite cleric and politician Abdel-Aziz al-Hakim, members of the United Iraqi Alliance agreed to hold a secret ballot to choose between two former exiles, Ibrahim al-Jaafari and Ahmad Chalabi, said Ali Hashim al-Youshaa, an alliance leader who attended the meetings. The vote is expected Friday.\nBoth candidates were expected to present their political agendas and priorities to alliance members before the vote, al-Youshaa said.\nThe failure to reach a consensus revealed cracks within the coalition, which consists of 10 major parties backed by Shiite religious leader Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani. But Hayder al-Mousawi, Chalabi's spokesman, denied there was a serious problem.\n"No way is there a division inside the alliance. Everybody agreed on adhering to whatever results the internal elections will reach," he said.\nA close aide to al-Sistani, speaking on condition of anonymity, said the alliance leaders will visit his office in Najaf to get his blessing for their choice for prime minister. If they cannot agree, al-Sistani will decide.\nIf provisional results stand, the alliance, made up of religious Shiite parties, will have 140 seats in the 275-member National Assembly. At least three other party coalitions that won seats in the assembly had joined the alliance's bloc, adding eight more seats, al-Youshaa said. All 148 prospective parliamentarians will vote in the secret ballot, officials said.\nAl-Jaafari leads the Dawa Party, known for its close ties to Iran.\nThe Kurdish parties have apparently agreed to support the alliance's candidate for prime minister in return for the presidency.\nThe race to be the Shiite's pick for prime minister narrowed Tuesday, when Adel Abdul Mahdi, who has close ties to Iran, dropped out.\nAl-Hakim, who also has close ties to Iran, has said he is not interested in the prime minister's post.\nThe competition for the prime minister's post came as the Iraqi Electoral Commission's deadline to file complaints approached. Commission spokesman Farid Ayar said 25 complaints have been filed so far.\n"Most of them are asking for a recount of the votes and we are looking into those requests," he said. "We tell them that we were very accurate in counting the ballots. You know, they just want more votes."\nHe said he expected the commission to certify the vote totals Thursday, when the official allocation of National Assembly seats would be announced. The assembly picks the president and two vice presidents and drafts a new constitution.\nOnce the results are certified, the present government must set a timetable for installing the new government. It is not known how long that might take, and it will depend on back-room deal making among the parties.\nThe clergy-backed United Iraqi Alliance got 48 percent of the vote for the National Assembly, the Kurdish alliance got 26 percent and interim Prime Minister Ayad Allawi, a secular Shiite who supported strong ties to Washington, 14 percent. Nine other parties also won seats.